Button-hole sewing-machine



(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet. 1'. J. W. LUFKIN.

BUTTON HOLE SEWING MACHINE.

Patented Mayl5,1883.

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4 sheets-sheen 2.

(No Model.)

J.. W. LUFKIN. BUTTON HOLE SEWING MACHINE.

Patented. May 15, 1883.

(No Model.) 4 sheetssheen 3.

J. W. LUFKIN.

BUTTON HOLE SEWING MAGHINB.

No. 277,755. Patented May 15.1885.

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(No Model.)

J. W. LUPKIN. BUTTON HOLE SEWING MACHINE.

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UNITED STATES- PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN W. LUFKIN, OF CHELSEA, MASSACHUSETTS.

BUTTON-HOLE. SEWING-MACHINE,

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 277,755, dated May 15, 1883.

Application tiled January 2i', lS. (No model.)

towing description, in connection with the ac-v companying drawings, is a specification, like letters on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention has for its objectimprovements `in.mechanism for operating the cloth holding and feeding clamp, in mechanism forvibrating the needlebar,in take-np mechanism, in ,novel mechanism for operating the loop spreatler,and in mechanism l'or cutting the button-holes whiieheld in the feeding clamp, as will be hereinafter set forth.

Figure-.1 represents inside elevation, partially broken out, a sewing-machine embodying mty invention Fig. 2,'an under side view there- Fig. 3, a section on theliuefr,Fig.4; Fig. 4, a top view of the forward end of the bedpiate, the slotted guide -plate being partially1 broken away, the cloth holding and feeding clamp being removed; Fig. 5, adetail showing part of the feeding mechanism on the dotted liueyy; Fig. 6, a separate sectional detail vof the cutting mechanism closed Figsfi and 8,- detals. of the cam wheel which moves the clamp; Figs. 9, 10, V11, and 12, details of the thread-nipping device and take-up; Fig. 13, a front view, showing the vibrating head and needle-bar; Fig. 14, adetil of the slotted end ot' the link om; Fig. 15, a detail of the upper member of the cutting mechanism.

This invention is an improvement on `what is called the Union Button-Hole Machine.

The a-rm A and bed A', plate A2, provided willi slot A, spring A, and cloth holding and feeding clamp A5 are all as usual.

The main shat't B, at its front end, has a disk, B', provided with a crank-pin to enter a curved slot ill 4.a cam block, B2, having a lng, B, through which is passed the necdlebar B4, the latter being connected with the said lug bythe set-screw B5.v The ueedle-bar B4, above and be low its point ot' connection with the said lug and cam-block, is passed thrugh guides C 0',-

formiug part oi' the vibrating head C2, pivoted by suitable screws, C3, on the bracket G4, extended forward from arm A. The 4vibrating head is open at its center, as shown iu Fig'. 13,.

Vright shaft, D, andhas 'a pin orroller to enter a cam-groove in a disk, D', attached to the said shaft, it running at half the speed ot' shaft B, the said groovebeing of suitable shape to vi brate the head U2 about its vertical pivots, so as to cause it to occupy such position that the needle 2 at one descentv will penetrate the fab.

ric and at its next descent pass over the edge o t the fabric, as in my Patent N o. 242,462, to

ywhich reference may bc had, thc extent ot' vibration ofthe head and the location ot' its pivotal points with relation to the `needle. hole plate heilig asfinthe said patent. In the said patent the needle-bar was operated vertically by a link having a ball joint, which required especial attention to keep itin working condition; but in this instance ot' my invention l have slotted the cani block sniiiciently deep and have made the crank -pin entering it ot' lsuch length that a portion oi it always remains in the said slot during all the positions oit' the vibrating head.

The disk ]3',at its rear side, has an eccentric, D4, (see Fig. 9,) which receives an eccentric strap, D5, having attached 'to it a wedge-block or nippingdevice, DG, made adjustable by a screw, D8," and held in adjusted position by a set-screw, D7. The eccentric moves the strap D5, and causes the 'wedge DU', according to its position thereon, to act sooner or later on the beveled edge oi' the takenp lever D9, pivoted ou the arm A at DI", and engage and hohl the takeup lever l)9 just as the needle-bar commences to rise to throw outits loop for the en trance therein ot' the loope'r or under-thread carrier. i

I. have discovered'that the take-up, when some classes of thread are being used, isat times pulled forward bykinking of the. thread, and itis this premature forward movement oi' the take-up to give up slackthread for thc stitch next to be madeihat I desire to obviate IOO by the employment of the wedge-block. The wedge isretracted to release the takelup and permit it to move forward andv give up its slack thread justas soon as the loop is formed inthe needle-thread for the entrance of the underthread carrier or looper to be described. This p art of my invention is lmore especially valuable for use with cotton thread. The take-up,

moved forward by the pull of the needle upon it, is moved backward by a suitable spring, D1?, and'its extentof backward movement is limited by a stop, D13, and the stress of the spring D12, which operates the take-up lever,'maybe adjusted by the adjusting device D, (shown as a screw.)

At the lower end ofthe shaft D is a disk, E, having attits lower side a cam-groove, a, and at its upper side a cam-groove, a', the latter being shaped as in dotted lines, Fig. 2, to enpin or roller-stud on the bar entering the saidY cam. The looper and the point are held in the said bar by set-screws acting directly lupon them; The block E2 serves as a guide for the said bar, and also as a guide to keepthespreaderlever E3 up to its work. rlhe spreader-lever has its lfulcruln at E4, and at its rear end has" a roller-stud to enter the cam-groove w, and at its outer end the said lever' has a block, a, adliustably attached to it by a screw, a4, and upon this block is mounted adjustably 'the loopspreader having two points, 3 and 4, for lifting the threads, the adjustment ofthe spreader and its retention in placebein'g effectedby a connected screw, a5, the shank of which is smaller in diameter (see Fig. 3) than the slot in which the said screw is'placed. y

In the class .of button-hole machine referred to, thespreader has commonly had three points, and the fulcrumof'the spreader-lever has been located back of an imaginary litnewhich, if drawn, would cutthe' center of the shaftD and the'center of the needlehole c2 of the throatplate c', or located, as in United States Patent No. 49,627,well back on the under side ofthe bedplate, away from the front of the machine and the operator. Such location of the fulcrum ot' thespreader-levermovesthespreaderin such au are with relation to that part of the throatplate c (see Fig. 3) through which the needle 2 is about to descend that the loop of under thread held by the point 4 of the spreader (when the said spreader carries the said loop farthest toward the front of the machine for the entrance of the said needle 2 through the edge of the fabric and through it) draws the said loop over to one side of the center of the holen the threat-plate, so that the needle has opened under it but a very small part ot' the loop held by the said point, and the available area of the said loop is in a measure contracted, and the' needle is apt to skip the loop ot' under thread.

By experiment I have discovered that the loop of under thread held by the point 4 may be kept fully distended, and the central part thereof bekeptor held more centrallywith relation to the path of descent ofthe needleand the center of the'needl'e-hole, provided the fulcrum of the said lever is changed to occupy a position at the front side of the said imaginaryline.

InV Fig. 2 I have shown by the dotted circley F the usual position of the fulcrum of-the spreaderlever,and by the dotted curved line c, I liave shown the arc in which the spreaderpoint is usually moved, and by the dotted curved line e' the arc in which the spreaderpoint is moved in accordance with my invention, this latter are so intersecting the needlehole that the spreader-point 4 in its forward position so holds the loop of under thread that its widest point is placed directlyv under the needle-hole, in order that the needle, when it descends through the cloth and the Vsaid hole, will penetrate the said loop at its widest point, and all liability ofthe needle passing outside of or skipping the loop of under thread is thus avoided. The point 3 operates, as usual', to take the loop of upper Ithread from the Y short point b after the latter has carried the said loop forward past the edge ot' the button- -hole, and spreads it for the entrance through it of the needle 2 and'its thread as the said ncedie-descends over the edge of the button-hole.

In the AUnion Button-Hole Machine referred to, the spreader, besides the two points 8 and 4, as herein shown, has a central point or tongue, as it is called, located between the two points Sand 4, the opposite sides of the said central point or tongue (zo-operating with the loop of thread furnished by the needle 2, so as to detain the same while the points b b enter the said loops at alternate descents ol' the said needle. I have Adiscovered that the so-called tongue maybe dispensed with, and the needle 2 have a larger space to work in, provided the slack thread carried by the needle2 is taken care of, and the loop, when being formed, is com pelled toprojectfrom but one side of the eye of the needle. I have obviated the projection of the loop at the front side ot' the needle, or from that side of the eyeof the needle at which the thread enters it,/by adding tothe needle-bar a frictional holding device for the needlethread, it being composed, as herein IOO IZO

end ot which enters the groove Ain the usual thin covering-plate, A2, and -then into the groove h of`the feedwheel Gr, toothed at its vperiphery and open at its center, as shown in Fig. 3, to lit over the usual annular hub, h2, forming part ot' and extended above the bed to the plate A.

The groove h', (see Fig. 4,) instead ot being heart-shaped, or substantially so, as heretoi'ore employed, is composed of two short connected curves, 6 7, each in length about one-fourth of a circle, the two curves described from different arcs meeting at a point near theI center ot' the feed-wheel. where the groove is provided with a latch, h3, hinged to the feedwheel at h4, the rear side ot the said latch bearing againstthe outside of the said hub, and being held out so that the latch partially intercepts the said grooves'at their junction, as in Fig. 4, except when the said latch comes opposite that-part of the hub which is cut away, a-s shown at 8.

Assuming that the button-hole has been cut in the fabric held by the clamp, as vwill be described, the lower end of the spring-held pin g will be passed /through the groove A and into the groove 6 at its outer end. After this the feed-wheel will he rotated in the direction of the arrow thereon, causing the groove 6 to act on the said pin and move the clamp forward while one'straight side of the buttomhole slitis being stitched; Vbut when the stitchingA reaches the usual eye ot' the said slit the latch ha, the feed-wheel having been rotated a quarter-turn, arrives in position to engage the lower endot' the said ping and carry the clamp in a circular pat-h about the hnbh2 toits opposite side, when the stitching of. the eye will' have been completed, and as the eye is completed the said latch comes/opposite the recess .8, referred to as being made in thehub, which permits the latch to i'all back and disengage the said pin, which, with its lower end in the` the said pin reaches the outer end ot' the groove,

an incline ati) in thebottom ot the said groove lifts the said pin out of the groove ot' thei'eedwheel, leaving the said clamp at rest.

The under side of the feed-wheel G (see Figs. 7 and 8) has a cam-groove, h4, which receives the roll h5, on the arm hfot' the shipper-lever, the said arm being connected to t-henpper end of' a roclcshaft, la?, having at its'lower end an arm, It, the shi pper-lever, composed ot' the parts h6, hi, and ha, being` held against the inner side wall of the cam-groove la? ot' the feed-Wheel by a spring, h. The feed-wheel hastwo series ot' gearfteeth, 12 13. The teeth 'l2 are engaged by a pinion, m, on a shaft, 'in'. (See Ifigs.` 3 and 4.) The shaftmis extended down through the center ot' a larger toothed gear, m2, which meshes with the teeth 13 of the feed-wheel G. The hub ot' the toothed wheel fm2 takes bearing in a recessed partof the bed of the machine, and has'connecte'd with' it by screws 15 a ratchet-wheel, m3.

Below the ratchet-wheel m3 is placed a second ratchet-Wh'echm, which is attached directly to the, shaft an' ot' the pinion m, and helow the said ratchet-wheel m* the said shaft'm has a bearing in a yoke, m5, and below the said -yoke the said shaft has attached to it a crank, m6, by which to operate the feed-wheel by hand when desired,

Immediately above the ratchet-wheel m3 is the pawl-cariier ln, having at its opposite ends the spring-pressed paw-ls we, the former engaging and moving thc ratchet-wheel m3, and the paw! n2 the ratchetwheel m4. The paw]- carrier is vibra'ted bythe link n3, connected therewithv at n4, and attached at its other end to the crank-pin a5 on the disk E,asin Fig. 2. The spacing ot the stitches longitudinally with relation to the button-hole slit, or vthe length ot' feed aboutthe eye and along the sides or straight parts of the button-hole slit, is co'ntrolled bythe movement of the ratchets mi and m4, and by the said ratchets and gears to op crate the feed-wheel I am' enabled to space the stitches dil'erently about the eye and straight sides ofthe button-hole, the greatest distance betweenthe stitches being aboutthe eye. It' the pawls operated for their whole throw upon the ratchets, the latter would be moved for n distance equal to fourteen of their teeth; but this greatest movement of the said vpawl is lessened or controlled, according to the demands of the buttoxrhole being worked, by shields interposed between the said ratchets and the pawls. The shields o oone for each pawl--are adjustably attachedto the'arm h8 of the shipper-lever by screws 16 17, as in Fig; 2. The shields having been adjusted to enable the pawls to turn the ratchets the desired distances, and the machine set in operation, the wall'of the caio-groove h4 will act on the roll h5 and turn the shipper-lever and antomaticall y change the positions ot' theshiehls 0 o to alter the eii'ective stroke of the pawls n' n2. When the roll h5 bears against the wall ot' the groove 'h4 nearest the center of the hub, as when the straight part ot' the` slit is being stitched, tbeshipperarm will beplaced in po-v sition to cause the shield o to be so .in terposed between the pawl u' and ratchet in as to prevent the said pawl from moving the said ratchet and its' toothed wheel fm?, and the feed-wheel will at such time derive its movement solely from the pawl nratchet mi, and pinion m; but at such time it will be observed that the toothed w-heel m2, freed from its pawl and IOC loose on the shalt m', will be turned by the teeth 13 of the feed-wheel. When the roll h5 lis against that part of the inner wall of the gear m2,ot` greaterdlameter than the pinion m,- then becomes the driver of the feed-wheel, and

'at such time the said pinion m, loose with relation to the said toothed gear, is driven by the feed-wheel.

The feed-wheel G has a-n opening, 1'8, (see Figs. 3 and 4,) through which the undermember, p, of the button-hole cutter may pass, to place it inproper position to meet the under side of the cloth held in the usual clamp, A5. This cutter member, of usual shape, has its shank p inserted into a suitable hole in the lever p2, pivoted at p3 on ajbracket., p4, supported by the bed ofthe machine. The upper member, p?, ot' the cutter is adjustably connected with the lever p6, pivoted at p7 on the said block. (See Figs. l and 6.) The upper lever, p6, carries a screw, p8, having a hand-lever, p9, and a beveled cross-head, p, the latter being adapted to enter a T-shaped groove in the lever p2, as in full lines, and to be turned by the yhandle into the dotted --line position, Fig. 6, to cause the two levers to be connected and drawn together by the said screw with sufficient forcevto enable the cutters to cut the button-hole slit in the fabric heldin -the said clamp. After cutting the button -hole the cross-head o f the screw is disconnected from the lever p2,and the lever p is lifted, as in dotted lines, Fig. 1, and the bottom lever drops down by gravity until the memberp is below the feed-wheel, its downward positin being determined by the bracket 'i'.

lt will be noticed that the opening 1S, through which thc cutters work, is in position tov permit the cutters to pass through itjust as the cam part 9 of the groove 7 ot -the feed -whcel disengages the pin gfrom the said groove, the button-hole having just been linished,'as before stated. In other machines employing a heart-shaped cam the opening for the cutters was so located with relation tothe feed-Wheel and the said cam as to necessitate a semi-rotation of the said feed-wheel by hand, after stitching each buttons-hole, to bring the said opening into operative position with relation to the cutters.

The member p5 is attached to the lever p by a screw. t, (see detail, Fig. 15,) and at each side of the said screw are screws 1. to adjust the face of the said member 1f to the tace ot the under cutter.

The T-shaped head pmis beveled, as shown at Fig. 6, so that as it is turned in the direction ofthe arrow into the T-shaped slot the said incline will co-operate with the screw to quicken the movement ot the cutting members.

.l claim- 1. The pivoted slotted head containing guides for the needle-bar and planed tov guide the cam-block, the needlebar, the cam block adapted to travel against the head, and the lug B`J ofthe said block to receive the needlebar, combined with the shaft B and its crankpin, and with meansl to vibrate the said head,

substantially as described.

2. The take-up lever to control'the needlethread, combined with the nipping device, and' Vsuitable means to operate it t0 engage and ca rrying-lever'having its fulcrum locatedas described,atthc front'ot' a line intersecting the needle-holeaud shaft D, whereby the spreader is enabled to spread'and hold the loop of nnder thread with its widest part under the nee- (lle-hole, substantially as described.

4. Theneedleand needle-barand its attached frictioual holdingdevice for the needle-thread, combined with the spreader-lever, and spreader having but two points, 3 4, substantially as described.

5. The spreader lever, its adj ustableblock a, and the attached spreader having but two points,leavingan unobstructed open space hetween them, combined with a cam for operating the said lever, substantially as described.

6. The feed-wheel provided with the double groove h', each short curved part 6 7 of which 'has a di'erent center, and the pivoted latch h3, combined with a cloth holding and feeding clamp, and a slotted plate, A, to operate substautially as described.

7. The feed-wheel provided with the double groove h', composed of short curved parts (i 7, and the pivoted latch, combined with the hub h2, cut away, as described, to permit the latch to fall back, as stated.

S. The feed-wheel provided with two setsot' teeth atditferent distances from its center, combined with a pinion and a separately and independentiy actuated toothed gear o t' larger diameter, 'the said pinion and gear heilige-ach adapted to at times enga-ge and rotate the said feed-wheel and to be rotated by the said feedwheel, as and forthe pur-poses described.

9. The pawl-carrier, its two pawls, the ratchet-wheel an* and its connected pinion, the ratchet-Wheel m" and its connected toothed gear, and the feed-wheel having two sets oi' teeth, l2 and 13, anda groove, h", combined with a shipper-lever, and shields to automatically disengage one and then the other of the said pawls to rotate the feed-wheel at; di'erent speeds, substantially as described.

10. The shipper-lever and means to operateitand its attached independent shields, combined with the two ratchets, and the pawl-carrier and its two pawls, the shields beingadapted by the movement ot' the shipper lever to suspend the operation of either pawl, substantially as described.

11..The cloth holding and feeding clamp and slotted plate below it, and the toothed feedwheel provided with a groove, h', having the IOS two curved portions 6 7, connected at but one end, and the pivoted latch at the intersection of the said grooves, combined with ar shaft, m', its pinion m, and crankn, substantially as and for the purpose described.

12. The feed-wheel provided with the opening 1S and the double groove h', shaped as ldescribed, and adapted to lift the pin ofthe clothholding clamp, and the cloth holding clamp, combined with the cutting mechanism, substantially as set forth.

13. The lever p6, its connected screw having the cross-head pl", and the lever 1J?, slotted to receive and retain the said cross head, com.- bined with the cutter members p p5, substantially as described 14. The leverpiand its cutting member p5,

and holding screw t, combined with the two adjusting-screws t', to operate substantiel] y as described.

15. The two levers 122116 of the cutting mechanism, and a screw fitted-to turn in one of the said levers and having a head to enter a slot in the other lever, combined with a. handle connected with the said screw to turnV it and force the cutting members of the said levers together, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

' JOHN W. LUFKIN. Witnesses:I

G. W. GREGORY, BERNICE J. Norms. 

